Old Money

As much as we want to stall the inevitable, those of us on the back nine of life provide an interesting conundrum for Destination Marketers…as well as marketers and content creators in general. Boomers and Xers hold the majority of the world’s wealth. And, the first members of the Millennial generation are just 7 years from turning 50 (yikes).

But, we face a dilemma. We want to be catered to and created for…but we often reject being depicted as 50+. When our firm does DMOvizion research, we often see Boomers score images of people with salt and pepper hair lower, saying the images remind them of Viagra commercials. And yet, we complain when content doesn’t accurately portray us.

Let’s take the movie industry. A third of their target market is over 50…but over 50s are more reticent to attend movies, post-plague. Thus, Hollywood has less incentive to create for this market…though its buying power is substantial. Indeed, people over 50 hold more than 70% of the private wealth in the U.S.

And, dig this. The number one TV show last year across all demographics (The Equalizer) starred 53-year old Queen Latifah. Even more astonishing is that the scripts are far from riveting; it’s her (and the cast’s) performance that makes it must-watch TV.

And there are lots of 50+ icons that are considered eminently watchable. Brad Pitt closing in on 60. Morgan Freeman at 86, Harrison Ford at 80, Samuel L at 74 and Stallone at 76. And, it’s not just the guys (though there are more examples than women). Terri and I watch 1923 more for 77-year old Helen Mirren than Harrison Ford. Jane and Lilly were sensational in Grace and Frankie. And, while mildly disturbing, who could take their eyes off of Emma Thompson (64) in Good Luck to You, Leo Grande?

My point is…while Hollywood is just beginning to get a clue about the buying power of this demographic, are Destination Marketers too focused on Gen Z and Millennials to see the opportunity in Gen X and Boomers? And, in communities that are starting to sense resident pushback on growing crowds of visitors, those cranky residents are, more often than not, over 50. If they saw more people who looked and acted like them, would they be so cranky?

In those communities, DMOs are quick to say that they are focusing their marketing on “high value consumers.” That they are targeting fewer visitors but those who spend more AND value the culture of the place…not the “locusts” that residents generally abhor. But, will the community really believe that? It’s counter-intuitive to most because all they see is the drive for more money.

It was likely 15 years ago that a DMO pro (that I hold in the highest esteem) told me he had encouraged his staff to eliminate marketing images of anyone who looked over 40. His rational was that those over 40 had already made their decision about his destination…and no amount of marketing or pandering would change that. He wanted to focus on people who had not already made up their mind…because those were consumers he could flip.

As much as I marveled at the thought process then, I wonder whether that still makes sense today. As polarized as we are and as much as corporations are now being attacked for supporting diversity and inclusion, can we agree that there are more old folks than young? And, that is where the gold is?

There are many groups in this country that feel they are being marginalized in some way, shape or form.  Don't we want to attract those people who have 70% of the money to our communities? These are the people who likely won’t puke on our streets, piss in our alleyways and keep residents up all night with their boisterous celebrations.

Hey…not that there’s anything wrong with that (I think we all went through that phase, n'est-ce pas?). But, if that’s what’s bugging your residents and business partners, maybe a shift is in order?